Biology

Faculty Research

Our faculty members are actively engaged in research projects in a varied range of
disciplines.

Virginia Probin, PhD, Human Research Dr. Probin’s research focuses on senescence, an irreversible cell cycle arrest that
can be considered molecular aging and has implications in organism aging. Previous
research has shown that the biolipid ceramide increases as cells age. Dr. Probin
is interested in elucidating the mechanism of ceramide increase. She has discovered
that sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) levels decrease as ceramide increases due to an
inhibition of sphingosine kinase 1 (SK1) expression. Currently, Dr. Probin is focusing
on the decrease in glucosyl ceramide species during cellular aging and the role that
glucosylceramidase inhibition may play in that.

Grant Bledsoe, PhD, Cardiovascular Disease Research Research interests focus on the protective actions of tissue kallikrein/kinin and
intermedin administration, via protein infusion or adenoviral gene delivery, against
cardiovascular and renal oxidative stress, inflammation and fibrosis, particularly
in the setting of hypertension.

Kevin Jones, MAT, Biology ResearchKevin Jones is interested in developing methodologies for culture of Orchidaceae including development of new hybrids. He is particularly interested in development
of more warmth tolerant varieties of Orchidaceae and developing hybrid orchids using
the South Carolina native epiphytic species Epidendrum magnolia. To facilitate this
he is also interested in developing new cultural methods for use in raising orchids
from seed. He works with undergraduate students in his laboratory/greenhouse developing
these methods and hybrids.

Charlotte Song, PhD, Botany ResearchDr. Song is currently studying the factors that switch a micro RNA target from being
regulated by cleavage to being translationally regulated. Micro RNAs are small RNAs
that have been studied extensively but were only discovered recently. They have been
found to have profound effects in development and regulation in plants and animals.
Dr. Song made a mutant population of Arabidopsis thaliana and screened individual plants for loss of translational regulation. She works with
undergraduates in her laboratory characterizing and mapping the mutants.

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